SALEM, Va. -- Exclamation point on the regular season!

Virginia Wesleyan College's volleyball team made their final regular-season weekend the best of the season as the Marlins posted back-to-back 3-1 victories on the road against a pair of 20+ win opponents. The sweep included a crucial showdown with Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) foe Roanoke College, with seedings for the upcoming tournament hanging in the balance.

Virginia Wesleyan dropped the opening set to the host Maroons, but came back impressively to win three in a row to snap Roanoke's seven-match winning streak.  More importantly, the ODAC win cemented a No. 2 finish in the the league for VWC, a first in program history.

Less than an hour after defeating the Maroons (20-8), the Marlins faced Averett University's Cougars from the USA South Athletic Conference in a non-league match on the Roanoke court.  Averett, which entered the match riding an eight-match winning streak, jumped out to a first-set win, but could not hold onto the momentum as Virginia Wesleyan came back again, winning three straight sets for the win.

VWC's sweep improved the Marlins' overall record to 23-9, tying the program mark for victories set in 2008 and tied in 2009 by teams also coached by current head mentor Andrea Hoover.  Saturday's wins not only provide impetus for VWC heading into the tournament, they also bolster the Marlins' current No. 6 South Region ranking.

"We talked the conference and the region before we played this weekend," said Hoover.  "We have actually been talking alot lately about everyone doing their jobs and trusting their teammates."

The Marlins apparently took it all to heart as it took total team efforts to knock off Roanoke and Averett in back-to-back battles.  After dropping a 25-17 set to Roanoke, the Marlins rebounded to win 25-20, 25-20, 25-21.  Averett (22-12) won 25-21 in the opener, before VWC eked out a 25-23 win in the second set and picked up steam to post 25-19, 25-13 victories to close the match.

Virginia Wesleyan produced 107 kills kin the two matchs, led by a strong 1-2 punch provided by senior Alex Lambert (Alexandria/Hayfield) and sophomore Tiffany Barrett (Stafford/North Stafford).  While Barrett knocked down 34, Lambert came through with 31, including 18 in the win over Averett.

Barrett recorded the best hitting percentage of the day with a .341 against Averett.  Her numbers were consistent throughout the two matches, not only with the kills, but also in digs.  She finished with 28, recording 14 in each match.  She also had three aces against the Cougars. 

Lambert's performance at the net helped to increase her season total of kills to 359, which ranks no. 5 in VWC history.  Barrett is at No. 6 with 346 kills. 

Juniors Marin Crowder (Charlottesville/Crozel Western Albemarle) andKirstin Sessoms (Virginia Beach/Bayside) also climbed among the Marlins' all-time season leaders in digs and assists, respectively. Crowder got under the ball for 52 digs, including 27 against Roanoke, improving her season total to 469, the third highest ever for VWC and only 15 shy of her program-record of 469 set last year.  Sessoms recorded a season-high 51 assists against Roanoke and finished with 87 for the day, improving her season mark to 835, the sixth best in program history.

Senior Michaela Holbrooks (Brookneal/Naruna William Campbell) provided key points for the Marlins against Roanoke and finished with 11 kills, her second highest total of the season. Sophomore Elizabeth Bailey (Chesapeake/Greenbrier Christian) came through for a season-high 18 digs. VWC finished with 14 block assists against the Maroons, led by Rosalind Ludovici (Virginia Beach/First Colonial) and Lambert with four each.

Sophomore Jessica Quinlan (Marlton, N.J./Cherokee) stepped up in the match against Averett to give the Marlins seven points on kills, and rookieEmilee Pierson (Sterling/Park View) contributed with 10 digs.

Virginia Wesleyan returns to competition on Wednesday, Nov. 5, hosting Emory and Henry College's Wasps in an ODAC quarterfinal game.  Game time will be announced later.

ODAC VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT PAIRINGS
Quarterfinals - Wednesday, November 5
Match 1: #8 Shenandoah at #1 Randolph-Macon - TBA
Match 2: #5 Roanoke at #4 Lynchburg - TBA
Match 3: #7 Emory & Henry at #2 Virginia Wesleyan - TBA
Match 4: #6 Randolph at #3 Washington and Lee - TBA

Semifinals and Final - Saturday, November 8
Match 5: Winner Match 1 vs. Winner Match 2 - TBA
Match 6: Winner Match 3 vs. Winner Match 4 - TBA
Match 7: Winner Semifinal #1 vs. Winner Semifinal - TBA